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Mugabe deploys more veterans to boost campaign

Reuters

Wed Jun 11,
2008 6:58pm BST

By Cris Chinaka

HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwean
President Robert Mugabe's party said on Wednesday it would deploy more war
veterans to campaign in some opposition areas ahead of a presidential
election run-off marred by violence.

Opposition Movement for Democratic
Change leader (MDC) Morgan Tsvangirai accuses ZANU-PF of widespread attacks
on his supporters ahead of the June 27 vote, but says he is still confident
of victory after beating Mugabe in the first round.

ZANU-PF officials
in the southern Masvingo province, where the ruling party lost several
parliamentary seats in rural districts traditionally considered safe, told
Zimbabwe state television they had stepped up their campaign against
"troublesome spots where MDC structures had taken root".

"We are setting
up units of war veterans to go to those areas to fan out the MDC, to
campaign for President Mugabe, to confront and talk to some company managers
who are openly supporting these MDC structures," said retired Major Alex
Mudavanhu, ZANU-PF chairman for Masvingo.

"We are going to tell people
that ZANU-PF is not going to lose this election," he said.

Mugabe's
guerrilla fighters from the 1970s independence war and ruling party youth
brigades are regularly deployed as political shock troops against the
opposition and have recently been threatening another bush war if Mugabe
loses.

Mugabe's support has been eroded by the economic collapse of
the once prosperous country, which he has ruled since independence from
Britain in 1980. On Wednesday, Mugabe's government announced tax cuts for
the low paid.

Mugabe's
party denies waging war on its foes and says "MDC thugs" have killed a
number of ZANU-PF activists, including war veterans.

SATELLITE
DISHES

On Wednesday, the MDC said the government had launched a campaign
forcing Zimbabweans to pull down home satellite dishes so they could not get
foreign television stations and would have to rely on the state broadcaster.
The MDC says that is biased.

Information Minister Sikhanyiso Ndlovu
rejected the charge.

"What I heard was that a lunatic war veteran was
going around telling people to remove their satellite dishes and we stopped
him because the government is committed to free flow of information," Ndlovu
told Reuters.

Tsvangirai, detained twice last week during campaigning,
unveiled a 75-seater bus he said would help to win votes.

"We are
going to be in every town, in every village to meet the people of Zimbabwe,"
the MDC leader told supporters.

The bus bore the words "A new President
ready to deliver a new Zimbabwe. Morgan is the one".

Zimbabweans hope
the election will start recovery from economic ruin that has brought 165,000
percent inflation, 80 percent unemployment, chronic food and fuel shortages
and has sent millions fleeing to neighbouring countries.

South African
President Thabo Mbeki, who has come under criticism for his softly approach
in trying to mediate in Zimbabwe's crisis, said his team was doing
everything it could to avoid "major problems" in the run-off.

"We are at
one with ... most of the international community that the incidents of
violence and reported disruption of electoral activities of some of the
parties are a cause for serious concern," Mbeki told parliament.

Mugabe,
84, says ZANU-PF cannot lose power to an opposition backed by "white
imperialists." He says Western countries want to oust him over his seizure
of white-owned farms to give to landless blacks.

Zanu-PF regime launches 'Operation Dzikisai
Madhishi'

Sokwanele

The Zimbabwean government has announced the beginning of
yet another operation designed to oppress the people of
Zimbabwe.

Under Operation Dzikisai Madhishi (Operation pull down your
satellite dish) the regime is forcing Zimbabweans to pull down their home
satellite dishes through which the majority of Zimbabweans have been able to
access eTV, SABC, Botswana Television as well some DSTV channels. The
coverage of the Zimbabwe Broadcasting Corporation (ZBC) is generally poor
outside of the main urban areas. The overwhelming propaganda content of this
state channel has seen the proliferation of private satellite dishes in
recent years.

This operation is a concerted effort by the regime to close
all spaces through which information can be disseminated, with the objective
of stealing the election.

Zimbabwe has descended into unparalleled
levels of media censorship. The regime is determined to cut off Zimbabweans
from the rest of the world by ensuring that they are unable to receive news
from outside Zimbabwe about what is happening in their own
country.

Operation Dzikisai Madhishi comes after the launch of Operation
Makavotera Papi (how did you vote) which has seen the unleashing of
horrendous acts of politically motivated violence against MDC supporters
since the March 29th elections.

After the 2005 elections, the
Zimbabwean government launched Operation Murambatsvina to punish urban
dwellers for their continued support for the MDC and resulted in almost a
million citizens being forced from their homes.

Operation Dzikisai
Madhishi began in Matabeleland South last week and has now spread throughout
the country. It is being undertaken by elements of the Central Intelligence
Organisation, police, army and youth militia. (via an MDC Press
Release)

This entry was written by Hope on Wednesday, June 11th,
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Comments 1.. Fish Eagle June 11th, 2008 11:11 1
This is an obvious extension of the ZPF campaign. The next move will be on
phone and Internet links.

2.. Faraway
June 11th, 2008 12:36 2 It's time to disable the propaganda machine.
Go for ZBC transmission and relay stations. Then the State newspaper
presses. Be creative. What is better; nobody knows what's going on or
everybody being falsely informed?

3.. Get Busy June 11th, 2008
13:23 3 This state has turned so rabbidly brutal against its own
people. By so doing they are simply hardening the people, with dire
consequences. See what has happened in Matabeleland, has Zanu ever won a
seat there? Once upon a time the country was purged of political opposition
activists who came from one region and that did not matter, now it is
wholesale and it will matter indeed. They need to be reminded of the fate of
KABILA. THEY CAN NOT FOOL THEMSELVES TO THINK THIS WILL LAST FOREVER. Its a
pity that these ZANU people think they are invinceble. I can sense there
being an in house job.

ZANU-PF death threats for WOZA activists

By Tererai KarimakwendaJune 11,
2008

There is deep concern for the welfare of the 14 WOZA activists who
were arrested 2 weeks ago and are being detained at Chikurubi and Harare
Remand Prisons. Lawyer Gift Mpisi, who is representing the WOZA detainees
and Shepherd Ndhlovu of the Men of Zimbabwe Arise (MOZA) were part of a
group of 6 WOZA activists who attempted to deliver food to those at
Chikurubi but were blocked by ZANU-PF thugs in an official
vehicle.

Ndhlovu said the incident happened at the prison entrance, where
the thugs approached in a twin cab with a ZANU-PF insignia and began
accusing the WOZA members of being MDC supporters. According to Ndhlovu the
thugs said the detained WOZA activists would be dead the next time they see
them.Ndhlovu is concerned because 12 of the 14 in detention were granted
bail on Wednesday but prison officials have not released them yet. Meanwhile
coordinators Jenni Williams and Magodonga Mahlangu were denied bail
Wednesday after the state claimed that they were likely to mobilise people
to demonstrate on the streets and cause violence ahead of the runoff
election.

The thugs ordered Ndhlovu and the others to follow them in
their own car, to Mabvuku Police station. Then they said they were taking
them to the ZANU-PF offices in Harare - a known torture centre where
opposition officials and supporters have been severely
assaulted.

Lawyer Gift Mpisi said they had no intention of going to the
ZANU-PF offices, but pretended to comply. The ZANU-PF vehicle ran red lights
at some point and this caused a commotion with other drivers and members of
the public, allowing the WOZA members to escape. They immediately went to
Harare Central police station to report the incident.

There is
concern for the WOZA activists because the government this weekend announced
new tougher measures meant to keep activists in detention for longer
periods. Deputy Attorney General Johannes Tomana told the state-run Herald
newspaper that bail would be denied to 'anyone suspected of committing or
inciting unrest.'

The WOZA activists first appeared in court on May 30.
They were granted bail but the state immediately appealed the decision and
they were remanded in custody until June 20, when they will answer to the
charges. The bail appeal hearing had already been postponed
twice.

The activists are being charged with conducting activities likely
to cause public disorder. Williams is facing the extra charge of causing
disaffection among the police and with distributing false
information.

Urgent Appeal for Solidarity by Zimbabwean
Women to African Women and Women All Over the
World

Overview on the situation in
Zimbabwe

On March 29,2008 Zimbabwe went to the polls to
elect its next government until 2013.Results for the Presidential elections were
announced a month later and people in Zimbabwe maintained peace .From 2 April
2008 the government organised a retribution campaign to target those who
allegedly voted for the opposition and since then there has been terror in
mostly rural Zimbabwe with youth militia under the command of the army and
police confirmed to have gone on to unleash terror in a campaign toteach the rural people how to correctly vote in the forthcoming
presidential run off supposed to take place on 23 May according to the law but
whose date remains unannounced

As a result of the terror campaign by the military and the
youth militia , the most affected are women and children as 80% of Zimbabwean
women live in the rural areas. So far, over 800 homes have been burnt down, over
10 000 people have fled their homes ,over 40 people have been shot dead in cold blood ,over 7000 teachers have fled
their schools as a number have been beaten in the eyes of parents and pupils,
Doctors for human Rights report that over 2000 serious cases of physical torture
and beatings have passed through their hands and a lot of those they treated
have suffered serious fractures to an extent that most are permanently
handicapped. The oldest victim of the post election violence is an old woman
with 12 grandchildren all of them orphaned and whose son is alleged to have
campaigned for the opposition. The youngest female victim is a 15 year old girl
who was stripped naked together with her pregnant mother forced to lie down and
beaten on the breasts and buttocks. Many women including the old have been
forced to strip naked and beaten on the breasts and buttocks. 7000 teachers, a
third of them women have fled their homes and several schools mostly in rural
areas are closed .Several girls and women are feared raped. The youngest child
seriously assaulted is only 3 years .Despite calls from all corners of the world
for the violence to stop ,it has become worse and we fear more and more people
are getting killed and buried

Our situation is such that an estimated 5
million Zimbabweans mostly professionals and the young have left the country .An
estimated 3 million are in South Africa with half being illegal immigrants
facing inhuman deportations daily. Women cross border traders cross over the
crocodile infested Limpopo River and
many have been allegedly raped .HIV and AIDS prevalence is 60% among women and
girls and their life expectancy is 34 years. Domestic violence is rife with a
woman killed or left for dead weekly.
Unemployment is 80% and inflation is 165 000 % and the highest in the world.95%
of women of the 200 000 women made homeless and jobless by the government 2005
Operation Restore Order which demolished their homes and markets that earned
them an income has left them in the open cold and in commercial sex work since
then and now the same women are alleged to have voted opposition and have gone
through torture. At least 6800 girls get raped annually and with the current
displacements the number is expected to treble .Most female teachers have been
displaced and many have fled the country and a lot more have sought refuge in
the cities. Access to the rural areas has always been a big challenge for
humanitarian organisations but now that women in rural areas are held hostage by
the militia and the army and the rural areas have been declared no go areas we
have seen it almost impossible to assist. Women Directors of NGOs are on
government hit list that seeks to arrest, detain and destroy the organisations
.Zimbabwean women inrural areas
constitute women abandoned by husbands and dumped in the rural areas because of
HIV status, they have gone through the war of liberation in the 1960s and 1970s
and war songs by the youth militias at their doorsteps have left them semi
slaved .The worst is that they have been beaten because their husbands, brothers
, uncles, boyfriends ,grandsons and other male relatives allegedly campaigned
for the opposition. Old grandmothers struggling to feed orphans and sickly,
women who are bed ridden, orphaned HIV positive children ,the poorest and
weakest have been tortured, terrified, displaced from homes and the
organisations that normally help them are denied access and with most of the
leaders on the government hit list .

OUR URGENT APPEAL FOR ACTION TO AFRICAN WOMEN
AND WOMEN ALL OVER THE WORLD

First we come to you because we have
exhausted all channels and have failed to get help and urgent attention .Please
help us find how best we can deal with the situation and appeal to anyone you
know who can help victims get immediate help like medication, safe shelter,
counselling and support leaders of women’s groups with security as they are also
under threat and have been victimised and most of them are on the government hit
list for those to be tortured and eliminated

Reach out to SADC and AU Countries
to put in place measures to protect women and girls fleeing Zimbabwe to take
refuge in neighbouring countries

Help us to see how we can use the AU
protocol for women’s rights for protection of women and girls. Zimbabwe ratified
the AU protocol

Help us get SADC and UN put in place
a security and protection plan for women and girls and help demilitarise the
youth militia and stop torture of ordinary citizens

Get our case on crimes against
humanity taken to the UN security council. We have all the documented evidence
since the terror started in 2000 to have theperpetrators brought to book

Mobilise female ministers and female
vice Presidents to convene an urgent meeting in the region and make appeals to
the Liberian President, Her Excellency Ellen Johnson to help us broker peace
talks in Zimbabwe with leaders of women’s groups in the continent included

Help us set up African women in
solidarity with Zimbabwe women focal point persons in African countries who go to their Presidents to lobby them to
come to the urgent rescue of Zimbabwean women

Pass on this message to any networks
you know and those who can assist should email

ILO slams Zimbabwe for 'flagrant
disregard' of unions' rights

The International Labour Organisation on
Wednesday criticised the Zimbabwean government's "flagrant disregard" for
the rights of unions and called it to accept an investigation into the
issue.

In a report, an ILO commission slammed the "obstruction" by the
Zimbabwean government which for two consecutive years has refused to appear
before the ILO to be quizzed on whether it has applied international
conventions.

During a special sitting on the situation in Zimbabwe held
by the ILO's annual congress, only Cuba's representative spoke out for the
Zimbabwean government, according to Jan Sithole, who is director general of
the federation of unions in Swaziland.

All other representatives from
employer, employee and governmental organisations criticised Harare's
regime, said Sithole, who was speaking on behalf of 11 African countries'
unions, representing over 12 million workers.

In an attempt to escape
the judgement of the Commission, Zimbabwe's government representative even
left the conference hall for the public gallery.

In the report
presented on Wednesday, the ILO commission "regretted the continual recourse
made by the government to the Public Order and Security Act (POSA) and
lately to the Criminal Law Act of 2006, in the arrest and detention of trade
unionists for the exercise of their trade union activities".

The ILO
also noted with "deep concern" on the "surge in trade union rights and human
rights violations in the country and the ongoing threats to trade unionists'
physical safety".

In particular, it deplored the recent arrests of two
union militants Lovemore Motombo and Wellington Chibebe and asked all
governments with missions in the country to be present at the trial and
"follow closely all developments in relation to their case".

The UN
agency also urged the government to "ensure all these basic civil liberties,
to repeal the Criminal Law Act and to cease abusive recourse to the
POSA".

In addition, it asked the government to halt all arrests, threats
and harrassment of trade unionists, and to drop all charges against them as
well as give them appropriate compensation.

Mbeki finally admits there is a crisis in Zimbabwe

By Tichaona Sibanda11
June 2008

South African President Thabo Mbeki finally acknowledged there
is a crisis in Zimbabwe, when he told MP's in Johannesburg on Wednesday that
violence in the country was a cause for 'serious concern.'Mbeki, who is
also the SADC bloc's chief mediator on Zimbabwe, has always downplayed the
crisis in the country, even telling journalists in April following the
disputed harmonized elections that 'there was no crisis' in
Zimbabwe.

But on Wednesday, with the increase of political abductions
and killings in the country, Mbeki was forced to admit that the violence and
disruption of electoral activities needed to be addressed urgently.'At
the moment we are doing whatever we can to ensure that we do not experience
major problems in the presidential second-round elections, set for June 27,'
Mbeki said.

Elias Mudzuri, the MDC's organising secretary and MP elect
for Warren Park, welcomed Mbeki statement but believes he could have done
more by calling on Robert Mugabe to order his troops back into the
barracks.

Soldiers, with the help of Zanu-PF militias and state security
agents, are being blamed for coordinating the crackdown on the supporters of
the MDC. The Joint Operations Command, a gathering of security and armed
forces chiefs currently in charge of the country, unleashed the armed
soldiers after it emerged that Mugabe and Zanu-PF had lost the March
elections.

Speaking about Mbeki's statement, Mudzuri said: 'At this
moment in time, we cannot force him but appeal to his conscience that the
person who is suffering under his mediation is the common man on the street.
As a result of the absence of observers many people have unnecessarily lost
their lives.'He added; 'If he delays by another day to send observers, he's
doing more harm than good to all Zimbabweans because we cannot recover the
lives of people dying, we cannot recover the limbs of those
maimed.'

Glen Mpani, regional coordinator for the Cape Town based 'Centre
for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation' said Mbeki should break his
bond with Mugabe and allow the crisis in Zimbabwe to be discussed at the
highest level.

Mpani said Mbeki could no longer pretend all was well
in Zimbabwe when the economic and political situation was deteriorating at
an alarming rate. He accused Mbeki of being complicit in protecting Mugabe
throughout his entire presidency, saying if he had spoken out against
Zanu-PF's human rights abuses years back, the situation could have been
different .

'He cannot say violence in Zimbabwe is of serious concern
when at the same time he's playing a leading role in blocking the same issue
from being discussed at the United Nations. When people say Mbeki is in bed
with Mugabe this is what they mean,' Mpani said.

'Observers must go to Zim now'

IOL

June 11 2008 at
01:20PM

The extensive deployment of Southern African Developing
Community observers in Zimbabwe is needed immediately, the University of
Pretoria said on Wednesday.

"These observers should not focus
primarily on monitoring the polls on voting day, but should be put in place
as soon as possible to cover the period leading up to the elections and a
reasonable period thereafter," said the university's centre for human
rights, housed in its law faculty.

The centre's director Professor
Frans Viljoen said whether an election was free and fair could not be
determined by only observing voting day.

It needed to take into
account the pre-election period and the period between voting and the
release of results.

"At the moment there are clear indications that
the pre-election conditions are not only making a free and fair election
impossible, but are skewed in favour of the candidacy of President
Mugabe."

Reported harassment, arrests, detentions and even the
disappearance of activists and leaders, media restriction, fear and
intimidation of the population and non-governmental organisations all worked
against free and fair elections.

As many observers as possible
should be allowed into the country, said Viljoen. - Sapa

MDC calls for urgent deployment of SADC
observers

The Zimbabwean

Wednesday, 11 June 2008 14:01The MDC said on
Tuesday it was perplexed by the absence of SADC observers on the ground,
with just 17 days to go before the crucial presidential run-off on 27th
June.Despite the SADC bloc promising to send up to 400 observers, only
about 50 have so far arrived in the country.Botswana became the
first country from SADC to send observers, when 25 jetted in on Saturday.
Another 25 will fly in on Wednesday. This other group is from the SADC
secretariat. There were 162 SADC observers during the March 29
elections.A SADC Heads of State Summit held in April in Lusaka,
following the disputed March elections, agreed that the number of observers
would need to be increased for the run-off. The MDC Secretary for
International Affairs, Professor Elphas Mukonoweshuro, said they had hoped
that a heavy presence would deter Zanu-PF from it's crackdown on MDC
activists.SADC has now blamed financial constraints for the delay in
sending observers, but the United States announced on Monday it had availed
US$7 million dollars, to help ensure they travelled to Zimbabwe for the
elections.US State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told
reporters in Washington that the money was 'not only to ensure that there
are proper, sufficient numbers from countries that are going to supply the
observers, but that they have the resources to do their job on the
ground.'Last week South African President Thabo Mbeki, the region's
chief mediator on Zimbabwe, said in a television interview that SADC was
increasing the number of observers 'so that they can cover all parts of
Zimbabwe' adding that 'they need to go in as early as possible.' That
statement was made with less than a month to go to the runoff, so President
Mbeki's understanding of what is 'early' is not necessarily the same as that
of the victims of violence.The intensity of the state sponsored
violence has increased on a daily basis and Mukonoweshuro said that since
the March elections at least 60 MDC supporters have been killed and over 50
000 displaced, in retributive attacks by ruling party militias.The
MDC MP elect for Gutu South said Tsvangirai, who claimed he won the
presidential election in March, agreed to participate in the run off on
condition that regional and international observers were allowed in early
and without restrictions.'Everyone is agreeing observers should
come in early, we are having a crucial election that could decide the
destiny of the country and yet there is no evidence of any electoral
observers anyway in the country. Perhaps they're observing from the comfort
of their hotel rooms,' he said.Mukonoweshuro went on; 'I don't want to
be harsh, but one can conclude perhaps they are waiting for more blood to be
shed before they begin to take note.'SWRadio Africa

Jails Emptied to Take in Opponents

The Monitor
(Kampala)

11 June 2008Posted to the web 11 June 2008

Kitsepile
NyathiHarare

Zimbabwe is planning to empty its flooded jails of
common criminals to make way for people arrested for political violence amid
fears President Robert Mugabe's government will step up the persecution of
opposition activists ahead of the June 27 presidential run-off
election.

Thousands of people, mainly opposition supporters have been
arrested since Mr Mugabe lost the first round of the election to Movement
for Democratic Change (MDC) leader, Mr Morgan Tsvangirai in March on
allegations of violence.

Although the United Nations and NGOs
blame ruling Zanu PF supporters and former fighters of the country's
liberation war loyal to Mr Mugabe for the violence that has killed more than
60 MDC supporters and left thousands injured, the majority of those arrested
are from the opposition.

Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa, told state
media on Tuesday that he had made proposals for the amnesty to create space
for those convicted of political violence.

He said cases of
politically motivated violence were on the increase countrywide with a
number of murders, abductions and cases of destruction of property recorded.
"We are proposing amnesty in order to create space for those convicted of
political violence," he said. "We recognise that incidents of political
violence are on the increase and we want to take measures to stamp them
out."

There are an estimated 20 000 people in Zimbabwe's prisons with a
carrying capacity of 18 000. But human rights groups suspect that the
population has swelled dramatically since the elections.

In the run
up to the March elections, where Mr Mugabe's Zanu PF lost its parliamentary
majority for the first time since independence in 1980 to the MDC, the
government denied reports that it was emptying jails to make way for
opposition activists.

Journalists, lawyers and MDC parliamentarians have
been targeted in the crackdown, which the opposition says is intended to
cripple its campaign. Mr Mugabe goes into the election as an underdog after
losing dismally to Mr Tsvangirai in the first round.

An official at
the Attorney General's office said they had adopted a policy of refusing
bail to those accused of political violence.

UK
Parliament Debate on Zimbabwe

Whether they will propose at the United Nations the installation of impartial
observers of the forthcoming election in Zimbabwe without delay.

The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Lord
Malloch-Brown) : My Lords, we have already raised the need for an
urgent deployment of international observers to Zimbabwe at the UN and with the
UN Secretary-General. We note that some observers are beginning to deploy, but
we continue to emphasise in our contacts with African and other international
leaders that many more are needed and quickly.

Lord Blaker: My Lords, is the noble Lord aware of the report
that the Americans and the European Union are proposing to send a message to the
United Nations calling on it to send representatives to Zimbabwe? Can he confirm
that that is the case and whether the message has gone? If it has gone that is
certainly a very good thing, bearing in mind that many countries and
organisations with great knowledge of the task have been refused admission to
Zimbabwe. Is it not important that those who send monitors to Zimbabwe should
have them remain there after the forthcoming vote to prevent a repeat of what
happened after the previous vote? They would need to spend a long time there
after the forthcoming vote to prevent what is happening now.

Lord Malloch-Brown: My Lords, President Bush has called for
observers, as have many European leaders. We are pressing the European Union to
make the case again, as we have, to the UN and the UN Secretary-General, who has
established a trust fund to support observers. Every step is being taken through
the UN and the AU to get as many observers there as possible. Certainly, they
should stay after the elections until the results are clear.

Lord Alton of Liverpool: My Lords, has the noble Lord had a
chance to read the reports in today’s newspapers that a six year-old boy was
burnt to death yesterday when soldiers attacked the home of an opposition local
councillor just outside Harare? What assessment have the Government made of the
reports that real power in Zimbabwe has now passed from the hands of Robert
Mugabe into the hands of the military?

Lord Malloch-Brown: My Lords, I saw that tragic report, as I
am sure all Members of the House did. This is not the first child or old person
to have died in recent weeks in Zimbabwe, caught up in massive electoral
violence intended to prevent the people of Zimbabwe exercising their democratic
free choice. We continue to press to get to the bottom of this electoral
violence and we will do all we can to contain and prevent it through
international pressure.

Lord Morris of Handsworth: My Lords, is the Minister aware
that in his lecture last night to the MCC on the spirit of cricket, Archbishop
Desmond Tutu said that Zimbabwe should not be allowed to tour England while the
current regime is in place? Although I recognise that it might not be easy for
the Government to ban the tour, are there any plans afoot to ensure that the
Zimbabwean team does not receive visas to enter the United Kingdom?

Lord Malloch-Brown: My Lords, the Government’s reluctance to
engage in sports boycotts is well known but it would be a complete travesty if a
Zimbabwean team were to tour this country under the present circumstances.
However, we very much hope that by the time this tour arrives a democratic
Government will be in office in Zimbabwe.

Lord Avebury: My Lords, is it not clear from the story
related by the noble Lord, Lord Alton, concerning the tragic death of not only a
six year-old boy but his pregnant mother in an arson attack, and from the many
other similar events happening up and down the country, that no matter how many
election observers are deployed by the African Union, SADC or the UN, the result
will be fixed by the military for its own purposes? Does the Minister not
therefore endorse the advice given by the Kenyan Prime Minister, Raila Odinga,
that we should tell Mugabe that his time is up and that, whatever the results of
the election, a strategy shall be developed to ensure that the will of the
people prevails?

Lord Malloch-Brown: My Lords, there is no doubt that if this
election were to result in a stolen result, not just the people of Zimbabwe but
the international community would say, “Enough is enough. This cannot be allowed
to stand”. However, the evidence we are receiving is that, far from being cowed
by this violence, the people of Zimbabwe are being spurred by it to turn in ever
greater numbers to the opposition. I suspect, therefore, that we may still see
the spirit of democracy prevail in this barren, difficult, oppressive
environment.

Lord Goodlad: My Lords, will the Minister confirm that the
Government have protested in the strongest possible terms to the Government of
Zimbabwe about the intimidatory treatment accorded to Dr Pocock, the British
Ambassador to Zimbabwe, and other diplomats? Will he acknowledge the
extraordinary physical courage shown by our diplomats in that country as well as
elsewhere?

Lord Malloch-Brown: My Lords, I have no doubt that the noble
Lord’s words will bring much comfort to Andrew Pocock and to other British
diplomats who are subjected to this kind of harassment. However, I suspect that
if Her Majesty’s ambassador were standing here today, he would say that what he
was subjected to—in this case what his diplomats were subjected to, because he
was not personally involved in the incident last week—is nevertheless mild
compared with the terrible violence that ordinary Zimbabweans are subjected to.
We have protested about the treatment of him and his colleagues, but we have
also protested repeatedly about the violence every Zimbabwean faces at the
moment.

Baroness D'Souza: My Lords, as I understand it, the date of
the next round of Zimbabwean elections coincides with the 90th birthday of
Nelson Mandela, for which there will be celebrations here in London. Could an
approach be made to Nelson Mandela to speak out about conditions in
Zimbabwe?

Lord Malloch-Brown: My Lords, I think that Nelson Mandela,
like Archbishop Tutu and other southern African leaders, is in no doubt about
the situation. No doubt they are taking counsel about when is the most effective
moment to speak out against a Government whose leadership is prickly,
nationalistic and deeply resistant to criticism even from their immediate
neighbours and, if you like, spiritual and intellectual peers, such as Mr
Mandela and Archbishop Tutu.

Lord Howell of Guildford: My Lords, over and above the point
rightly made by my noble friend Lord Blaker about keeping on the monitors
afterwards, does the Minister agree that, right from the start in this tragedy,
HMG and indeed the whole of this nation have sought to do good and to have a
positive policy for the people of Zimbabwe, and yet the most horrible rumours
and anti-British propaganda continue to circulate throughout the whole region?
Bearing in mind the difficulty of the excellent high commissioner in Zimbabwe,
who has had great difficulties getting anything out in the media at all, would
there be a case for our high commissioner in Pretoria being able to speak a bit
more vigorously, and possibly with less quiet diplomacy, making the case we are
trying to make, which is for liberty and the rule of law and not for any sort of
backward-looking ideas about colonialism? Can we have a better and more vigorous
case to put to the people of South Africa and Zimbabwe?

Lord Malloch-Brown: My Lords, I think that the people of
South Africa are in no doubt about the regime that immediately neighbours them.
The tragic incidents involving Zimbabweans and other immigrants in South Africa
is the most violent expression of a much greater unease in the country about how
this issue of Zimbabwe has been handled. We are seeing in the words of the ANC
president Mr Zuma and other South African leaders an increasingly robust and
forceful determination to ensure that democracy does prevail next door.
Certainly we as British spokesmen need to contribute to that while ensuring that
we do not overstep the mark and provide evidence that somehow we are thought to
be inappropriately intervening in the affairs of
Zimbabwe.

Emptying the Food Basket - We Know the Culprits

Follow the spoor of Robert Mugabe's
agricultural policies from 1999 onwards and you appreciate why his recent
posturing at the food summit in Rome was nothing more than grandiose
political gimmick.

Seven million of Mugabe's fellow citizens will soon
have to face a bloody and confrontational electoral run off on empty
stomachs, yet Mugabe has managed to expel humanitarian agencies from rural
areas to safeguard his receding political empire.

Poverty,
political mileage and food are an inextricable conundrum of survivalist
patronage in Zimbabwe, understood only by those who are collective
victims.

The ageing dictator's self-serving ideological delusions that
America, England and EU are responsible for Zimbabwe's food woes
surprisingly ring tones of sympathy with many so-called anti-globalisation
and anti-neo-liberal converts who conspire to camouflage Mugabe's policy
deficiencies under a collective global banner.

Yet the facts are
evident. Before his disastrous 'land reform' of 1999, Zimbabwe was a net
exporter of food. The abused white commercial farmers - whose human resource
policies were not half as demonic as the current 'indigenous' ones - merely
paid the price of dabbling in opposition politics.

If the current
'settlers' are Mugabe's cronies or eternally grateful perennial praise
singers, how different are they from their predecessors in the context of
democratic right of freedom of association?

At a closer look, Zimbabwe's
beneficiaries of 'land reform', in US dollar terms, have received ten times
as much in input support than previous farm owners.

Between 1980 and
1999, farming was considered a business, not part of a complex web of
political philanthropy. Investors went to seek loans from commercial banks,
traded and exported on the open market.

Nowadays, Gideon Gono, Central
Bank Governor of Zimbabwe is complicit to a broader scheme of highly
politicised handouts of tractors, fertilisers, seed and diesel that easily
find their way onto the black market.

Meanwhile, this public charade of
policy misdemeanours has driven inflation beyond the two million percent
mark and decimated Zimbabwe's food baskets.

If Horace Campbell, the
acclaimed Pan-Africanist says "food riots in Senegal, Ivory Coast, South
Africa, Egypt, Somalia and Cameroon are the outward signs of the stirrings
of a new liberation movement where the peoples of Africa are demanding food,
clothing, shelter and access to proper health care", I argue that in
Zimbabwe, just restore the sanctity of property rights and we will smile all
the way to the grain silos!

The uncanny propensity of Africans to seek
scapegoats for policy failures has manifested itself in xenophobic attacks
on Zimbabweans by South African hooligans, bankrolled with COSATU's
socialist rhetoric.

Pan Africanist Tajudeen Abdul-Raheem says
'unpatriotic national leaders sell Africa to anti-people globalisation and
neo-liberal policies that continue to impoverish Africans', but my question
is, how can Zimbabwe, with so much arable land, be poorer than Namibia with
so many sand dunes?

I insist that African liberation and nationhood can
co-exist with globalisation, trade and privatisation. Otherwise how else can
we fuel economic growth and self-sufficiency?

Robert Mugabe and his
fellow revolutionaries have studied Maoist dogma long enough to remember
that it is easier to control starving masses than an enlightened well-off
middle class.

Zimbabwean NGOs that have been, since 1980, covering up his
policy deficits are now criminalised for supplying food to starving
citizens.

Bright Matonga, self-appointed minister for misinformation,
alleges that NGOs use food to buy votes for opposition to ultimately
discredit Robert Mugabe.

Diplomatically Quiet on Zimbabwe

The disputed election of March 2008 has further eroded the economy of
Zimbabwe, a nation once regarded as "the breadbasket of Africa." Millions of
refugees, fleeing a nearly decade-long economic collapse, have flooded into
neighboring South Africa, where recent outbreaks of violence against foreigners
have provoked harsh criticism of president Thabo Mbeki. According to Patrick
Bond, director of the Centre for Civil Society at the University of
KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, Mbeki's policy of "quiet diplomacy" has nurtured
the dictatorship of Robert Mugabe, Zimbabwe's ruler for nearly thirty years.

Matthew Hennessey of Policy Innovations interviews Bond, author
of several books including Zimbabwe's Plunge and Looting Africa:
The Economics of Exploitation.

Is land reform at the root of the political crisis in
Zimbabwe?

No, I see it as a symptom of the conflict, useful mainly for confusing
people. After Mugabe lost the February 2000 constitutional referendum and the
opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) rose to threaten his hold over
the state, land politics became a central piece of the ruling party's
legitimation strategy. It appears now, however, that cronyism has gone so far
that even once-enthusiastic backers of land redistribution via the war veterans
and paramilitaries have to acknowledge high levels of corruption, incompetence,
and an agricultural crisis. Sorting out agriculture, post-Mugabe, will be
exceptionally difficult if there is a relatively close balance of forces between
Mugabe's cronies and a new, democratic government. It's easy to see how U.S.,
British, and other Northern pressure will only make matters worse.

How has the land reform issue been dealt with in South
Africa?

Nearly identically to Zimbabwe in its 1980–2000 policy period. The same "willing seller,
willing buyer" strategy was adopted. Even the same World Bank staff have
been involved. And the results, too, have been the same: practically no land
reform in South Africa's first fourteen years of democracy. Around 4 percent of
arable land has changed hands, when 30 percent was the target for the first five
years. This was based upon a natural turnover in the market of six percent and
the expectation that an end to subsidies for white farmers would put even more
land on the market. The obvious consequence has been growing social unrest in
both urban and rural settings.

In spite of Zimbabwe's meltdown since late 1997, there have been fairly good
gross domestic product (GDP) growth rates in the three neighboring states to the
east, south, and west: Mozambique, South Africa, and Botswana. It is plausibly
argued, for example by the Financial Times correspondent in Harare,
that South African businesses have benefited from Zimbabwe's meltdown thanks to
large inflows of desperate and inexpensive labor and takeovers in the domestic
market as manufacturers went bankrupt. Remember, Zimbabwe used to have the
world's third-largest industrial economy as a percentage of GDP.

The main "risk" is an awareness by business leaders that what happens in
Zimbabwe is a harbinger for southern Africa's problems, since so many nations
have rather similar appearances. The biggest difference in South Africa, though,
is a strong civil society which has contested what's called the "Zanufication"
of the African National Congress, with a degree of success.

Do you expect violence in Zimbabwe to worsen prior to the June 27
runoff?

Yes, and it's happening now. Thabo Mbeki's younger brother,
Moeletsi, gave one of the most eloquent warnings of how bad things might get on
Sky
Television last year. Reading this will help you to understand why Thabo has
nurtured Mugabe's dictatorship, and why intense violence is the inevitable
result.

Should he be elected, what should Morgan Tsvangirai do to address the
dire economic conditions inside Zimbabwe?

Hopefully, Tsvangirai keeps his word and strives to win the June election
outright rather than agree to a top-down government of national unity which
would cement all the worst features of political life in Zimbabwe. As the
situation in Kenya shows, there's no guarantee of stability while an Old Guard
elite retains partial power. If Tsvangirai were to miraculously win and be
appointed president, the first job for any serious government would be to end
the crony relationships that are so central to the inflationary surge.
Dislodging several thousand parasitic bureaucrats will take enormous effort.

The challenge is greater because of the conditions that lending countries and
institutions would likely attach to aid and loan money ($2 billion/year is
anticipated). These conditions would include the full liberalization of
macroeconomic relations, privatization of parastatal agencies, and decimation of
the bloated civil service—actions that would rapidly shrink effective demand and
create much more instability.

Repayment of Mugabe's $5 billion in odious debt to the Bretton Woods
Institutions and other lenders will be another crucial economic choice:
Progressives demand repudiation of this debt in view of the corrupt character
and ineffectiveness of Mugabe's prior international financial dealings.

Although the World Bank called his 1990–95 Economic Structural Adjustment
Programme "highly satisfactory" (the highest rating), the rest of the society
believes it to have been a central structural cause of the subsequent meltdown.
There are a few civil society initiatives, such as the Jubilee
affiliate and the National People's Convention, which will resist the sort
of program that the World Bank and its donors are currently drawing up, partly
in association with Movement for Democratic Change economists and the Cato
Institute.

Are South Africans satisfied with their government's response to what
is happening in Zimbabwe?

Thankfully, no. The disgust most South Africans have for Mbeki's quiet
diplomacy approach to Zimbabwe—i.e., nurturing Mugabe's dictatorship—is similar
to the disgust for the structural aspects of his rule in South Africa, including
AIDS denial and pro-poverty/profit policies.

His economic policies led to such intense inequality—higher even than during
apartheid—and also the doubling of unemployment, while the West cheered him on,
that grassroots reaction was inevitable. Recently this has turned
proto-fascistic with xenophobia, but the reaction is also captured in a more
hopeful sign: There are more protests and demonstrations in South Africa than
just about anywhere else in the world.

The challenge is to help channel this amazing energy and address the local
grievances in a structural manner, so that society can quickly move to both a
post-nationalist and post-neoliberal footing. The Zimbabwe situation has such an
adverse balance of forces that getting to the first stage will be difficult
enough, since Mugabe appears ready to cling to power at all costs—and the second
stage may be foiled by the heavy hands of bumbling Western diplomats.

Meanwhile, at least a couple of million Zimbabweans here in South Africa are
hunkering down, as it's not safe to go home, and it's sometimes not safe to go
outdoors in South Africa either. This is in part because Pretoria has been
really slow, stingy, and xenophobic in its own right, when it comes to refugee
relief.

Coalition Agreements...

Comment from a correspondent -

AS this country sinks back into
war, I re read the two coalition agreements which got trashed, the last one
on Feb 2. Had the two MDC's fought the election together, we would not be
in this position we are in today.

APRIL 2007 COALITION – PLUS MINUTES OF JULY 07 NATIONAL
COUNCIL MEETING REFERRING TO COALITION (PAGE 8),

FEB 2008 COALITION AGREEMENT THAT WAS REJECTED BY
TSVANGIRAI – PAGE 11 (PAGE 17 HAS RATIOS OF SEATS BY
PROVINCE)

DRAFT
Coalition Agreement

___________

Preamble

Recognising
that
the differences which have arisen within the MDC must be put aside and that the
two MDC formations should work together in the national
interest;

Believing
that meaningful change in Zimbabwe can come only through democratic, free and
fair elections in which every Zimbabwean citizen has a vote and a reasonable
opportunity to exercise that vote;

Appreciating
the strong national sentiment for unity of purpose in confronting the
dictatorial governmental structures within
Zimbabwe;

Realising
that active co-operation between the two MDC formations will greatly enhance the
prospects of successfully contesting
elections:

Now
therefore the
two formations enter into this Coalition
Agreement:–

Preliminary

1.
Interpretation

(1)
In this Agreement, the following terms have the following meanings¾

“Coalition” means the coalition formed by the two MDC
formations in terms of clause 4, acting where appropriate through the structures
established under this Agreement;

“Coalition structure” means a structure established in
terms of clause 6, 7, 8 or 9;

“MDC formation” or “formation” means the formation led
by Morgan Tsvangirai and the formation led by Arthur Mutambara
respectively.

(2) References to clauses and subclauses are to the
clauses and subclauses of this Agreement.

2.
Mutual recognition

Each MDC formation fully accepts the independence and
equality of the other formation.

3.
Co-operation between formations

The MDC formations agree that the principles enunciated
in this Agreement provide a sound foundation for future co-operation between the
two formations, and that these principles also constitute a sound basis for
dealing with broader national issues.

Formation of coalition, Values, Principles, Goals and
objectives

4.
Formation of Coalition

(1) The MDC formations hereby agree to form a
Coalition to be known as the Movement for Democratic Change Coalition.

(2) The MDC Coalition will be bound by and strive
for the fulfilment of the values and principles set out in clause
5.

(3) The MDC Coalition will strive to achieve the
goals and objectives set out in clause 6.

5.
Values and Principles

(1) The MDC Coalition will at all times be bound by the
following general principles and values:

a)respect
for the equality of all persons without regard to race, ethnicity, gender,
language, religion, political opinion and place of birth or
origin;

b)respect
for the inherent dignity of each and every person and in particular the right to
life and bodily safety;

c)respect
for human rights and in particular freedom of expression, assembly, movement and
the right to liberty and protection of the
law;

d)respect
for democratic principles and democratic
discourse;

e)adherence
to the principle of non-violence in the conduct of all political activity,
including interaction between the two
formations;

f)the
pursuit of meaningful political change in Zimbabwe through democratic, peaceful,
free and fair elections.

6.
Goals and objectives of Coalition

The
MDC formations commit themselves to working together and supporting each other
in the Coalition, in accordance with its values and principles, to achieve the
following goals and objectives through the use of non-violent, legitimate
means¾

(a) the replacement of tyrannical governmental
and political structures in Zimbabwe by a new democratic order which creates a
non-racist, non-tribalist, non-sexist and tolerant society which respects
equally and fairly different ethnic, religious, cultural and political
groups;

(b) the formulation, adoption and
implementation of a new democratic constitution which has been agreed to through
an inclusive and transparent process involving all the main political and civil
society organisations in Zimbabwe;

(c) the formulation, adoption and
implementation of a new electoral order in Zimbabwe which complies with
democratic principles and international electoral
standards.

Structures of
Coalition

7.
National Coalition Council

(1) The MDC formations agree to establish forthwith a
National Coalition Council composed of the national executive committee of each
formation.

(2) Meetings of the National Coalition Council will be
chaired on an alternate basis by the National Chairpersons of each
formation.

(3) The National Coalition Council must meet at least
twice a year.

(4) Meetings of the National Coalition Council will be
called or convened at the request of the Coalition Executive
Committee.

(5)
The National Coalition Council will have power and authority, in furtherance of
the Coalition’s objectives¾

(a) to give broad policy direction to the
Coalition structures; and

(b) to assign or delegate functions to
Coalition structures to enable them fully to implement this
Agreement.

8.
Coalition Executive Committee

(1)
There will be a committee of the National Coalition Council, to be known as the
Coalition Executive Committee consisting of the following persons from the
formations¾

(a) the Presidents and the Vice Presidents;

(b) the National Chairpersons and
Vice-National Chairpersons;

(c) the Secretary-Generals and the Vice
Secretary-Generals;

(d) the Treasurer-Generals and Vice-Treasurer
Generals;

(f) the National Directors of
Elections.

(2) The Coalition Executive Committee will be
responsible for devising effective joint political strategies, including
strategies in relation to elections, to further the objectives of the
Coalition.

(3) The President of each formation will preside as
chairperson at alternate meetings of the Coalition Executive Committee, and will
be regarded as chairperson of the committee from the commencement of the meeting
at which he or she presides until immediately before the commencement of the
next meeting.

(4) The Coalition Executive Committee may give
directions to the Coalition Task Force regarding the implementation of
strategies it has devised.

(5) The Coalition Executive Committee, through its
chairperson, must keep the National Coalition Council regularly informed of its
decisions and their implementation.

9.
Coalition Task Force

(1)
There will be a committee of the National Coalition Executive Committee to be
known as the Coalition Task Force and consisting of the following persons from
the formations¾

(a)the
Secretary-Generals and Deputy
Secretary-Generals;

(b)the
Treasurer-Generals and Deputy
Treasurer-Generals;

(c)the
National Directors of Elections;

(d)the
National Organising Secretaries;

(e)the
Information and Publicity Secretaries; .

(f)the
National Chairpersons of the Women’s and Youth Assemblies
and

(g)the
Women and Youth Secretary-Generals or National
Secretaries.

(2)
The Coalition Task Force will be responsible for¾

(a) effectively implementing the policies and
strategies of the Coalition; and

(b) fund raising to support Coalition
activities, including voter education and the organisation of MDC election
campaigns.

(3) In consultation with each other, the
Secretaries-General of the formations will be responsible for setting up a
secretariat to support the work of the Coalition Executive
Committee.

(4) The publicity functions relating to the Coalition’s
activities will be performed by jointly by the Secretaries-General of the
formations.

10.
Provincial, district and ward structures

(1) There will be Coalition Task Forces at Provincial,
District and Ward levels which will consist at each level of the following
persons from the formations:

(a)Chairpersons;

(b)Secretaries;

(c)Treasurers;

(d)Organising
Secretaries;

(e)Election
Directors;

(f)Information
and Publicity Secretaries; and

(g)Chairpersons
for Women and Youth.

(3) If the boundaries of a province, district or ward,
as recognised by one formation, differ from the boundaries recognised by the
other formation, the Coalition Task Force will determine which boundaries should
be recognised for the purpose of this
Agreement.

(4) The functions of the Coalition Committees will be
to ensure that this Agreement, and the policies and strategies devised by the
National Coalition Council and the Coalition Executive Committee, are fully
implemented within their respective provinces, districts and
wards.

11.
Convening of meetings of Coalition structures

(1) Coalition structures, in consultation with each
other, will meet at such times and places as they may decide from time to
time.

(2)
The chairperson of a Coalition structure¾

(a) may convene a special meeting of the
structure at any time;

(b) must convene a special meeting of the
structure on the written request of not fewer than of one-third of its members,
which meeting must be convened for a date not sooner than seven days and not
later than thirty days after the chairperson’s receipt of the
request.

(3) No business may be discussed at a special meeting
convened in terms of paragraph (b) of subclause (2) except the business
specified in the request for the meeting.

(4) The Secretary-Generals must ensure that every
member of the structure is given at least forty-eight hours’ notice of every
meeting of the structure, and the notice must specify the business to be
transacted at the meeting:

Provided that where it is urgently necessary to do so, a
Coalition structure may hold a special meeting even if its members have been
given less than forty-eight hours’ notice of the meeting, but the reasons for
doing so must be fully recorded in the minutes of the
meeting;

12.
Procedure at meetings of Coalition structures

(1) If for any reason the chairperson of a Coalition
structure is not present within fifteen minutes after a meeting of the structure
was due to commence, the other joint chairperson will chair the meeting, and if
that other chairperson is also absent for any reason, the members present must
elect one of their number to preside at the meeting as acting
chairperson.

(2) A majority of the total membership of a Coalition
structure will form a quorum at any meeting of the
structure.

(3) Decisions of Coalition structures must be reached
on the basis of consensus, and if a structure is unable to reach consensus on
any issue, the issue must be referred to a higher structure for
decision.

(4) Subject to this clause, the procedure to be adopted
at meetings of a Coalition structure is to be determined by the structure
itself, except where a higher structure has specified the procedure to be
adopted.

Selection of
Candidates

13.
Presidential elections

(1) The MDC formations agree that if the
Coalition decides to contest the next Presidential election, the Coalition will
put forward a single candidate to contest it, and that candidate will be chosen
by the formation led by Morgan Tsvangirai.

(2) If the candidate referred to in subclause (1)
wins the Presidential election, he or she will appoint as one of the
Vice-President a person nominated by the formation led by Arthur
Mutambara.

14.
Elections to the House of Assembly

(1)
If the Coalition decides to contest the next general election on the basis of
the current constitutional provisions (that is one hundred and twenty elected
seats), the question of which formation should put forward a candidate to
contest a seat will be decided as follows¾

(a) where a member of one of the formations
holds a seat, or held it immediately before it became vacant, that formation
will put forward a candidate, after consultation with appropriate organs of the
other formation, to contest the seat;

(b) where a seat was not held by a member of
either formation, each of the formations must, within the prescribed period of
time, hold primary election to select a candidate for this seat. An Electoral
College with thereafter be established to decide on which of the two candidates
will be selected to contest that seat. The Electoral College will consist of 30
persons from each of the formations. The Electoral College may, as part of the
process of selection, interview each of the candidates. In the event that the
Electoral College is unable to reach a consensus on which of the two candidates
to select, the matter will be referred to the Coalition Executive Committee. The
Coalition Executive Committee will, by consensus, decide which of the two
candidates to select. Its decision will be final and
binding.

(c) in selecting candidates for the next
general election in respect of whom clause 14(1)(b) applies the Coalition must
ensure that each formation will have fifty per cent of the
candidates.

(2) If a by-election for a seat in the House of
Assembly is to be held before the next general election, the decision to contest
it will be reached by the Coalition after a process of consultation, and if it
is decided to contest the seat, the allocation of the seat between the
formations will be determined in accordance with subclause
(1).

(3) In the selection of candidates for a general
election, the Coalition must try to ensure that 50 per cent of the chosen
candidates for seats in the House of Assembly are women, but if that target is
not possible it must ensure that at least 30 per cent of the candidates are
women.

15.
Elections to the Senate

(1) If the Coalition decides to contest the next
general election on the basis of the current constitutional provisions (that is
fifty elected seats), each formation will be allocated fifty per cent of the
Senate seats available.

(2) In the selection of candidates for a general
election, the Coalition must ensure that 50 per cent of the chosen candidates
for seats in the Senate are women.

16.
Local authority elections

(1)
If the Coalition decides to contest a local authority election, the question of
which formation should put forward a candidate to contest a seat will be decided
as follows¾

(a) where a member of one of the formations
holds a seat, or held it immediately before it became vacant, that formation
will put forward a candidate, after consultation with appropriate organs of the
other formation, to contest the seat;

(b) where a seat was not held by a member of
either formation, the Coalition will agree upon an equitable formula for
deciding which formation should put forward a candidate to contest the seat,
taking into account such considerations as the prospect of winning the seat in
question. The formation which is allocated the seat will put forward a
candidate, after consultation with the appropriate organs of the other
formation, to contest the seat.

(3) In the selection of candidates for local authority
elections, the Coalition must try to ensure that 50 per cent of the chosen
candidates are women but if that target is not possible it must ensure that at
least 30 per cent of the candidates are
women.

17.
Changes to structure of parliament or electoral system

In the event that before the next
election:

(a)there
are changes to the law relating to the structure of parliament so as to increase
the number of seats in the House of Assembly or Senate;
and/or

(b)there
are changes to the electoral system so as to introduce a system of proportional
representation based on a party list system;

the Coalition Executive Committee must meet to devise
upon an equitable formula for the distribution of seats that is consistent with
the principles set out in this agreement. The Coalition Executive Committee will
transmit this formula to the National Coalition Council for its approval.

Post-Election
Procedures

18.
Allocation of Government posts by President

(1) Subject to the Constitution, if the Coalition wins
the presidential and parliamentary elections, the President will allocate
Cabinet posts in consultation with the Vice President and the National Executive
Council, taking into account the need for equitable distribution of posts
between the two formations, regard being had to the importance of those
posts:

Provided that the President may allocate not more than
three of the Cabinet posts in his or her sole
discretion.

(2) Subject to the Constitution and any other law, the
President will make appointments to other Government offices in consultation
with the Vice President and the National Coalition Executive Committee, taking
into account the need for equitable distribution of posts between the two
formations paying due regard to the principle of equality of the two formations
and the need for equal representation.

19.
Priorities following election victory

If
the Coalition wins the presidential and parliamentary elections and no new
national Constitution has been brought into operation, the MDC Government
commits itself to making the process of Constitutional reform its main priority,
and in this regard it is agreed that¾

(a) the MDC Government will consider itself to
be a transitional administration tasked with formulating and implementing a new
democratic Constitution after thorough consultation with the people of
Zimbabwe;

(b) the constitutional reform process will last
no more than two years from the date on which the winning Coalition Presidential
candidate takes office, and will culminate in fresh elections conducted in terms
of the new Constitution which will be held not later than five years from that
date.

20.
Failure to win the election

If the Coalition loses the presidential and
parliamentary elections, the National Coalition Council will meet to discuss the
future of the Coalition.

Miscellaneous
Provisions

21.
Expenses of Coalition

Any expenses incurred in carrying out this Agreement, or
in operating the Coalition structures, will be divided in equal shares between
the two formations:

Provided that the Coalition Task Force may decide that
any particular expenses will be shared in different proportions or will be borne
by one or other of the formations.

22.
Changes in Constitution or in electoral procedures

(1) If any amendment to the national Constitution or to
the electoral law should render any provisions of this Agreement inappropriate,
the National Coalition Council must meet without delay in order to decide what
modifications should be made to those provisions in order to meet the changed
situation brought about by the constitutional or statutory
amendments.

(2) Any modifications agreed upon by the National
Coalition Council in terms of subclause (1) will have effect as if they had been
incorporated into this Agreement.

23.
Further co-operation between formations

The MDC formations undertake to extend the co-operation
between them with a view, if possible, to ultimate reconciliation and
reunification.

From MDC MUTAMBARA National Council Meeting Minutes July
2007.

Coalition
Agreement

·The
National Council noted that as a party we have consistently called for unity of
purpose among all democratic forces, particularly the need to adopt the single
candidate principle announced by the President of our Party on the 16th March
2007.

·The
National Council further noted that over the last ten months both formations of
the MDC have been engaged in private internal negotiations which have in recent
months focused on how to bring to fruition the single candidate philosophy.
These negotiations culminated in a draft Coalition Agreement which seeks to give
Zimbabweans an opportunity for a concerted effort to dislodge ZANU-PF.
Today we official make this agreement public

·The
National Council resolved to formally adopt the Coalition Agreement as is, i.e.,
as initially adopted by the two negotiating teams

·The
National Council noted that the Tsvangirai formation has rejected this Coalition
agreement. Fellow Zimbabweans, it is with a heavy heart that we announce that
our colleagues have rejected a united front of all democratic forces that would
have increased the opportunity for us to defeat the criminal regime of
Robert
Mugabe.
Unity of purpose and action is essential to energise and mobilise the people of
Zimbabwe
in their pursuit of change, more so when it is clear that the conditions of our
elections will be neither free nor fair. If Morgan
Tsvangirai
does not understand the strategic value of unity in our struggle against Mugabe,
Council wonders whether he is fit to be the President of Zimbabwe. If
Morgan
Tsvangirai
is such a weak and indecisive leader who cannot embrace what ordinary
Zimbabweans are demanding (unity of action and purpose), is he worthy of the
presidency of this country? Zimbabweans deserve better leadership.

·Consequently,
the National Council resolved to proceed on its own in preparation for any
future elections. We will be fielding our own Presidential candidate against
both Robert
Mugabe
and Morgan
Tsvangirai.
We are here to present strategic vision and decisive leadership. The people of
Zimbabwe
demand nothing less.

·The
National Council further resolved that the Party still believes in the need for
democratic forces to wok together. Unity of purpose and action in the opposition
is still a core and central organising principle of the Party. However, the
Party will only participate in a process that gives life to the united front
inspired by single candidate philosophy where there is mutual respect and trust
for all parties.

Failed reunification, my account of what I
experienced that tragic weekend

When our National Council ( MDC
Arthur Mutambara ) was requested to attend an extraordinary National Council
Meeting for the reunification process, there were mixed emotions as we travelled
to Harare. Many of us had been deeply hurt in the
last couple of years, and quite frankly were proud to be part of a sincere and
principled group that were of one heart and vision, working tirelessly for the
betterment of our country. We all knew that for the sake of all our beloved
Zimbabweans we had to do all that was in our power to have a united front
against Mugabe to free the people of Zimbabwe. We
were secure that we would make the right decision.

Ten of our top
leadership had been working again on some type of agreement (the last one a
coalition agreement had been rejected by the Tsvangirai formation in April last
year). This was a reunification agreement.

On
Saturday morning we were presented with a document that the top ten from
both parties had agreed upon. They told of endless debates being held until the
early hours of many mornings, saying they faced the hardest negotiations of
their lives. The document they showed us a fully comprehensive one and I attach
it here so you may see for yourself what it is all about. The reunification
process seemed fair and just in every way and culminating in a reunification
congress shortly after elections dissolving both parties and making one reunited
MDC. We debated vigorously but sensibly. Our concerns though were few and not
too major. Our unity was incredibly evident, with our desire for freedom and an
end to the suffering of our nation being our focus.

The new seats
allocation between the two formations was a little disappointing for our side,
effectively giving the Tsvangirai formation approximately 70% in 6 provinces,
50% in 1 province and 30% in the 3 Matabeleland provinces, but we recognised
that all agreements require a considerable amount of compromise and tolerance.
By 12 midday we had adopted the agreement and were ready to meet with the other
team and sign it into being. I even had a romantic notion of the two leaders
holding clasped hands up in the air to a roar of Chinja Maitiro
......

Instead we waited for four hours while the Tsvangirai formation
debated. Eventually our top ten were called back into negotiations. The
Tsvangirai formation's National Council had been debating at the same time as us
and could not accept what their top ten had negotiated for them. From 4pm until 8 30 pm we waited and were then told that the
Tsvangirai formation were sticking over the point of wanting to have two more
seats in Bulawayo. We had already compromised in
other areas- for example we had agreed to only have 28% of seats in Harare, even though we were entitled in terms of our
agreement to at least 33%. Arthur had asked them to please make a decision one
way or the other by the next morning, as we just could not debate further. The
Tsvangirai formation's Bulawayo contingency were,
it seemed, really fighting the process, and I couldn't help but cry in my heart:
" Please, please remember the bigger picture for the people."

Sunday morning our leadership called us in and we heard
that the Tsvangirai Formation had brought an entirely new and different demand
to the table. Funnily enough the Sunday Mail newspaper heard before us. We were
told that the Tsvangirai formation wanted 50 % of all the Matabeleland and Bulawayo seats, including those where our MPs were
already sitting and further they would not guarantee not fielding in the other
50%! Taking 26 and then halving the voters in the other half! Where was the
good will towards a uniting MDC?

We were blown away! A few of us women
cried and I even had an opportunity of saying with a broken heart "Do we give it
to them to stop the suffering of the people?" But even as I said it, I thought
what will we be doing for the people of Zimbabwe?
If we give them greedy MPs who think only of themselves anyway, are we not
betraying them more? Arthur and Welshman ( our Secretary General ) both looked
me directly in my face and asked if I had an idea of what to do and said they
had tried their absolute hardest......

The press conference was given and
we are going alone. I see that Eddie Cross has written of the gloom in our camp.
Yes, that is true, but not because we cried for ourselves. There is no doubt
that our gloom was shared by millions of patriotic Zimbabweans who hoped that
people would put personal interests aside for National interest- something that
the Tsvangirai formation has failed to do. Eddie also has written that the
decision not to form a united front was" received favourably across the
nation.." Whilst I have no doubt it was received favourably in State House and
by Zanu PF throughout the nation, I think the truth is that most reasonable
Zimbabweans were deeply disappointed. Yes Eddie, we are very very sad, but not
for ourselves. In fact, to stand with principled people is the greatest honour
of my life.

I will never stop fighting this regime as long as I have
breath in my body and I have no feeling of guilt or shame in the choices we have
made because we gave it our best shot. We must now take on the brutal Zanu Pf
regime divided - but we will do so with courage and
determination

Recalling
that the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) was founded on 12 September 1999
on the values of solidarity, justice, equality, freedom, transparency, humble
and obedient leadership and accountability, with the broad objective of
obtaining the mandate of the people of Zimbabwe to govern
democratically.

Recognising
that from 12 October 2005, differences emerged in the united MDC, resulting in
the creation of two formations which culminated in one having a Congress in
Bulawayo in February 2006 and the other in Harare in March 2006.

Fully
aware
of the issues that separated us on the 12th of October 2005 but nonetheless
regretting the separation, the acrimony and disharmony that characterised the
aftermath of the separation.

Greatly
Pained
by the continuing severe suffering of our people and the continued reduction in
the quality of their lives.

Appreciating
the
strong national sentiment for the unity of democratic forces in confronting the
violent and dictatorial ZANU PF government.

Acknowledging
the cooperation and work we have done together in recent
times.

Determined
that the differences which divided us must be resolved and put aside so that we
can work together in the national interest.

Now
we the leaders of the MDC enter into this agreement.

PRELIMINARY
1.
Interpretation

(1)
In this agreement the following terms have the following meanings “MDC
formation” or “formation” means the formation led by Morgan Tsvangirai and the
formation led by Arthur Mutambara.

(2)
“New Seat” means any seat not presently held by any of the MDC
formations.

2.
OBJECTIVES OF THIS AGREEMENT

2.1
The MDC formations hereby set themselves the ultimate goal of reunification and
accordingly hereby agree to reunite and to embark on a process that is defined
in this agreement which will lead to reunification under and in terms of this
agreement.

2.2
The MDC formations recognise that reunification will only be complete and final
after the Reunification Congress described below.

2.3
The MDC formations recognise that pending the Reunification Congress this
agreement will bind the parties during the transitional period from the signing
of this agreement to the date of the Reunification Congress.

3.
VALUES AND PRINCIPLES

During
the transition and thereafter the new MDC will at all times be bound by the
following general principles and values:

a)
respect for the equality of all persons without regard to race, ethnicity,
gender, language, religion, political opinion and place of birth or
origin;

b)
respect for the inherent dignity of each and every person and in particular the
right to life and bodily and mental safety free of all forms of violence and
intimidation;

c)
respect for human rights and in particular freedoms of expression, assembly,
movement and the right to liberty and protection of the
law;

d)
respect for democratic principles and democratic
discourse;

e)
adherence to the principle of non-violence in the conduct of all political
activity, including interaction between the two
formations;

f)
the pursuit of meaningful political change in Zimbabwe through democratic and
peaceful, mass mobilisation and open, free and fair
elections.

4.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

The
MDC formations commit themselves to the goal of reunification and working
together and supporting each other in accordance with the above values and
principles to achieve the following objectives through the use of democratic and
legitimate means –

(a)
the replacement of tyrannical governmental and political structures in Zimbabwe
by a new democratic order which creates a non-racist, non-tribalist, non-sexist
and tolerant society which respects equally and fairly different ethnic,
religious, cultural and political groups;

(b)
the formulation, adoption and implementation of a new democratic constitution
which should be agreed to through a consultative and transparent
process;

(c)
the formulation, adoption and implementation of a new electoral order in
Zimbabwe which complies with democratic principles and international electoral
standards on free and fair elections.

(d)
the implementation of economic programmes that will address the national
economic crisis which is characterised by high level of poverty and the collapse
of the country’s social and infrastructure.

5.
THE TRANSITIONAL NATIONAL REUNIFICATION STRUCTURES

5.1
Transitional National Reunification Conference

5.1.1
There shall be a Transitional National Reunification Conference made up of the
National Councils of both formations.

5.1.2
Meetings of the Transitional Reunification National Conference (TRNC) shall be
chaired on an alternate basis by the National Chairpersons of the
formations.

5.1.3
The Transitional Reunification National Conference (TRNC) shall meet once to
adopt this agreement and to launch the new MDC, thereafter the TRNC may meet at
the discretion of the Transitional Reunification National Standing/ Working
Committee (TRNSWC) and in any event must meet at least once before the
Reunification Congress.

5.2
Transitional Reunification National Executive

5.2.1
There shall be a Transitional Reunification National Executive (TRNE) composed
of the National Executive Committees of the formations.

5.2.2
Meetings of the Transitional Reunification National Executive shall be chaired
on alternate basis by National Chairpersons of the
formations.

5.3.1
There shall be a Transitional Reunification National Standing/Working Committee
(TRNSWC) consisting of the National Standing Committee and the National
Working/Strategy Committee of the two formations
respectively.

5.3.2
The TRNSWC will be responsible for devising effective joint programmes,
operations and joint political strategies.

5.3.3
Meetings of the TRNSWC shall be chaired on an alternate basis by the Presidents
of the two formations.

5.3.4
The TNRSWC may give directions to the Coordinating Committee and any other
committee and structure of the new MDC.

5.4 Sub Committees of the
TRNSWC

5.4.1
The Coordination Committee

5.4.1.1
There shall be a committee of the TRNSWC to be known as the Coordinating
Committee which shall consist of the following

(a)The
Presidents and Vice Presidents

(b)
The National Chairpersons

(c)
The Secretary Generals and the Deputy Secretary Generals

(d)
The Treasurer Generals and the Deputy Treasurer Generals

5.4.1.2
The Coordinating Committee shall be responsible for supervising the execution
and implementation of all programmes and directions of the
TRNE.

5.4.1.3
The Coordinating Committee shall be chaired by the Presidents on alternate
basis.

5.4.2
The Organising Committee

5.4.2.1
There shall be an Organising Sub Committee which shall consist
of:

(a)
The National Organising Secretaries and their Deputies;

(b)
The Chairpersons of the Women and Youth Assemblies;

(c)
The National Organising Secretaries of the Assemblies of Youth and
Women;

(d)
Other members not exceeding four appointed by the TRNSWC.

5.4.2.2
The function of the Organising Sub Committee shall be to supervise structures,
conduct the integration or election of the structures of the new MDC and
implement the outreach programmes of the new MDC as directed by the
TRNSWC.

5.4.2.3
The Organising Committee shall be chaired by the Organising Secretaries on an
alternate basis.

5.4.3
The Election Sub Committee

5.4.3.1
There shall be an Elections Sub Committee which shall consist
of:

(a)
The National Secretary of Elections and Director of Elections and their
Deputies;

(b)
The National Organising Secretaries and their Deputies;

(c)
The National Organising Secretaries of the National Assemblies of Youth and
Women;

(d)
The Secretaries responsible for Policy and Research.

5.4.3.2
The functions of the Elections Sub Committee will be to devise effective
strategies for elections and to supervise and deal with all technical issues
connected with the elections including the recruitment and training of election
agents.

5.4.3.3
The Sub Committee shall be chaired by the National Secretary and Director of
Elections on an alternate basis.

5.4.4
The Finance and Fundraising Sub Committee

5.4.4.1
There shall be a Finance and Fundraising Committee that shall consist of the
following:

(a)
The Treasurer Generals and the Deputy Treasurer Generals;

(b)
The Secretary Generals and the Deputy Secretary Generals;

5.4.4.2
The functions of the Finance and Fundraising Committee shall be to fundraise and
to handle the funds of the new MDC and carry out all fundraising activities of
the new MDC.

5.4.4.3
The Finance and Fundraising Committee shall be chaired on an alternate basis by
the Treasurer Generals of the formations or in their absence their
deputies.

5.4.5
Information and Publicity Sub Committee

5.4.5.1
There shall be an Information and Publicity Sub Committee that shall consist
of:

(a)
The National Secretaries for Information and Publicity and their
Deputies;

(b)
The National Secretaries of Information and Publicity of the National Assemblies
of Women and Youth.

5.4.5.2
The Information and Publicity Sub Committee shall subject to the directions of
TRNSWC deal with matters of the Media, Information and Publicity and branding of
the new MDC.

5.4.5.3
The Sub Committee shall be chaired by the Secretaries for Information and
Publicity on an alternate basis.

5.4.6 The Legal Sub
Committee

5.4.6.1
There shall be a Legal Sub Committee that shall consist
of:

(a)
The National Secretaries of Legal Affairs and their
Deputies;

(b)
The National Secretaries for Legal Affairs of the Women and Youth National
Assemblies.

5.4.6.2
The functions of the Legal Sub Committee shall be to deal with all Legal matters
and in particular to draft the constitution of the reunited MDC under the
guidance and supervision of the TRNSWC.

5.4.7
Secretariat

5.4.7.1
There shall be a Transitional Secretariat of the new MDC which shall be
structured as directed by the Coordinating Committee under the supervision of
the TRNSWC.

5.4.8
Provincial, District and Ward Structures

5.4.8.1
There shall be Transitional Reunification Taskforces at Provincial, District,
Ward and Branch levels which shall consist at each level of the following
persons from the two formations:

(a)
Chairpersons

(b)
Secretaries

(c)
Treasurers

(d)
Organising Secretaries

(e)
Election Directors/Secretaries

(f)
Information and Publicity Secretaries; and

(g)
Chairpersons of the Youth and Women.

5.4.8.2
If the boundaries of a province, district or ward, as recognised by one
formation, differ from the boundaries recognised by the other formation, the
TRNE will determine which boundaries should be recognised for purposes of this
Agreement.

5.4.8.3
The functions of the Transitional Reunification Taskforces shall be to ensure
that this Agreement, and the policies and strategies devised by the TRNSWC and
the TRNE, are fully and effectively implemented within their respective
provinces, districts, wards and branches as the case may
be.

5.4.8.4
Meetings of Provincial, District, Ward and Branch Taskforces shall be chaired by
the chairpersons at each level on an alternate basis.

6
GENERAL PROVISIONS ON CONVENING OF MEETINGS OF TRANSITIONAL REUNIFICATION
STRUCTURES

6.1
Transitional Reunification structures shall meet at such times and places as
they may decide from time to time.

6.2
The Chairpersons of a Transitional Reunification structure
–

(a)
may in consultation with each other and with the Secretary Generals or
Secretaries convene a special meeting of the structure at any
time;

(b)
must convene a special meeting of the structure on the written request of not
fewer than of one-third of its members, which meeting must be convened for a
date not sooner than five days and not later than twenty one days after the
chairperson’s receipt of the request.

6.3
No business may be discussed at a special meeting convened in terms of paragraph
(b) of sub clause (2) except the business specified in the request for the
meeting.

6.4
The Secretary Generals or Secretaries at the relevant level must ensure that
every member of the structure is given at seventy two hours notice of every
meeting of the structure, and the notice must specify the business to be
transacted at the meeting.

Provided that where it is urgently necessary
to do so, a Transitional Reunification structure may hold a special meeting even
it its members have been given less than seventy two hours notice of the
meeting, but the reasons for doing so must be fully recorded in the minutes of
the meeting.

7
Procedure at meetings of Transitional Reunification Structures

7.1
If for any reason the chairperson of a Transitional Reunification Structure is
not present within fifteen minutes after a meeting of the structure was due to
commence, the other joint chairperson will chair the meeting, or if that other
chairperson is also absent for any reason, the members present must elect one of
their number to preside at the meeting as acting
chairperson.

7.2
A majority of the total membership of a Transitional Reunification Structure
shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the structure.

7.3
Decisions of Transitional Reunification structures must be reached on the basis
of consensus, and if a structure is unable to reach consensus on any issue, the
issue must be referred to a higher structure for decision.

7.4
Subject to this clause, the procedure to be adopted at meetings of a
Transitional Reunification structure is to be determined by the structure
itself, except where a higher structure has specified the procedure to be
adopted.

7.5
All business of any structure shall be conducted on the basis of mutual respect
and tolerance.

7.6
All decisions shall be arrived at by way of open debate and
consensus.

7.7
All decisions of the new MDC shall be debated and made only in the formal
structures as defined in this agreement

8
2008 NATIONAL ELECTIONS

8.1
General Principles

8.1.1
The MDC formations hereby agree to be bound and guided by the single candidate
principle.

8.2
Presidential Election

8.2.1
The MDC formations agree they will put forward a single candidate to contest the
Presidential election and that candidate will be endorsed by the Transitional
Reunification National Conference at its first meeting under and in terms of
this agreement.

8.3
Parliamentary Elections

8.3.1
Having regard to the premature termination of the terms of office of the current
Members of Parliament, it is hereby agreed that all sitting Members of
Parliament will be candidates in the 2008 elections, unless at least 50% of the
relevant District Executive Committees or District Council of the formation to
which the MP belongs petitions otherwise in the case of an unconfirmed
MP.

8.3.2
Each sitting Member of Parliament will choose which constituency he or she
wishes to be a candidate in, having regard to the new delimitation of
constituencies provided that such selection shall be of a constituency which
contains a part of his or her previous constituency.

8.3.3
In the event that two or more sitting members choose the same constituency and
they fail to resolve the matter by consensus, the formations shall organise a
primary election in that constituency. The primary election shall have an equal
number of elected officials in the District and Ward Executive Committees of
each formation in that constituency. Voting shall be by secret ballot. The
winning candidate in shall be the candidate in that constituency and the losing
candidate/s shall be candidate in the other part of his or her old
constituency.

8.3.4
In the event of an equality of votes the matter shall be determined by the
casting of lots.

8.3.5
Where a seat was not held by a member of either formation, the formations hereby
agree that the formations which will put forward a candidate to contest the seat
shall be determined taking into account the following
factors:

(a)
the respective strengths of each formation’s structures;

(b)
the respective presence of each formation in the province and
constituency;

(c)
the prospect of winning the seat;

(d)
the obligation to ensure that at least a third of the candidates are
women;

(e)
the need to ensure a presence of each formation in all
provinces;

(f)
the need to adhere to the principle that no formation shall have less than a
third of the new seats in each province.

8.3.5
Pursuant to the above the parties have agreed that the provincial allocation of
parliamentary seats be as provided in ‘Annexure A’ attached hereto.

8.4
Local Government Elections

8.4.1
The formation which currently holds a council seat shall put forward a candidate
to contest that council seat.

8.4.2
Where a council seat is not currently held by any of the formations, the
formations hereby agree that the council seats in each provinces shall be
allocated to each formation in accordance with the following formula:

PROVINCE

MDC
(MT)

MDC
(AM)

Harare

70%

30%

Bulawayo

30%

70%

Midlands

50%

50%

Manicaland

70%

30%

Mash
West

70%

30%

Matabeleland
Nort

30%

70%

Mash
West

70%

30%

Mash
East

70%

30%

Matabeleland
South

30%

70%

Masvingo

70%

30%

8.4.3
Where, for any reason a formation is unable to fully take up its allocation of
seats the other formation shall be advised expeditiously so that that formation
put forward candidates in those seats.

9.
POST ELECTION PROCEDURES

9.1
Allocation of Government Posts by President

9.1.1
If the MDC wins the Presidential election, the elected President shall appoint
as Vice President a person nominated by the other
formation.

9.1.2
If the MDC wins the presidential election, the President shall allocate Cabinet
posts in consultation with the Vice President and the TRNSWC, taking into
account the need for equitable distribution of posts between the two formations,
regard being made to the importance of those posts.

9.1.3
Subject to the Constitution and any other law, the President will make
appointments to other Government offices in consultation with the Vice President
and the TRNSWC, taking into account the need for equitable distribution of posts
between the two formations paying due regard to the principle of equality of the
two formations and the need for equal representation.

10.
PRIORITIES FOLLOWING ELECTION VICTORY

10.1
If the MDC wins the presidential and parliamentary elections, the MDC Government
commits itself to making the process of Constitutional reform its main
priority.

11.
REUNIFICATION PROCESSES

11.1
Within a month after the 2008 elections each formation shall submit to the
TRNSWC a list containing the names of each office holder in each structure for
every Branch, Ward, District and Province.

11.2
The TRNSWC shall prepare a consolidated list for each formation from the lists
so submitted by each formation.

11.3
Thereinafter the Organising Sub Committee shall seat as a verification committee
and for this purpose its functions shall include:

(a)
the verification of each formation’s structures as indicated in the formation
lists referred to in Clause 11.1 above.

(b)
agreeing on and preparing final lists of structures for each formation;
and

(c)
doing any other things and carrying out any other tasks as assigned by the
TRNSWC.

11.4
Within three months after the 2008 National Elections, the Legal Sub Committee
shall produce an agreed draft of the reunified party which draft shall be
debated by the TRNSWC and referred to the TRNE for debate and further referral
to the TRNC for endorsement and adoption.

11.5
After the adoption of the draft new Constitution by the TRNC, the Organising Sub
Committee shall organise the election of the new MDC structures from branch
level to Provincial level.

11.6
No later that four months form the last Provincial Congress of the new MDC, the
TRNE shall agree and set a date for the Reunification Congress, which as far as
possible shall not be later than 12 months from the date of the
election.

11.7
The Organising Sub Committee shall verify the names and structures of all
persons attending the Dissolution Congresses and thereinafter shall prepare the
Reunification Congress List.

11.8
The first day of the Reunification Congress shall be set aside for the holding
of separate dissolution Congresses of the formations, in accordance with such
rules as shall be agreed to by the TRNE.

11.9
The subsequent days of the Congress shall deal with the business of endorsing
the new constitution and the election of office bearers as defined by the new
constitution.

11.10
The Coordinating Committee shall be responsible for dealing with all logistics
of the Congress including the issues of transport, accommodation and
catering.

11.11
Once a new leadership has been elected and the Congress has concluded its
business, this agreement shall expire and the united party shall be run on the
basis of the new Constitution.

12.
DISPUTE RESOLUTION

12.1
Each formation undertakes unequivocally to abide by the letter and spirit of the
agreement and no party shall have the right of unilaterally resiling from or
repudiating this agreement.

12.2
In the event of a dispute between and in any lower structures or between
individual members the same shall be referred to the TRNSWC for conciliation,
mediation and arbitration. The decision of the TRNE on arbitration shall be
final and binding.

12.3
In the event of a dispute between the formations emanating in the TRNE or any
other superior structures, the parties shall attempt to resolve the same through
dialogue and where such dialogue fails, either of the parties shall have the
right to refer the same to conciliation, mediation or arbitration before any
agreed retired judge, retired or serving Head of State or Government or any
other prominent international person agreed by the
parties.

12.4
Where the parties are unable to agree on the choice of an arbitrator then the
Commercial Arbitration Centre in Harare at the request of either of the parties
shall make the appointment.

12.5
The arbitration proceedings referred to in this paragraph shall be governed by
the Arbitration Laws of Zimbabwe.

Thus
Done and Signed on Harare on this ……………………….day
of February 2008.

Zimbabwe
police swoop on Christian groups in Harare

Ecumenical News International

10 June 2008 | 08-0456 |

Harare
(ENI). Zimbabwe police and security forces have raided the Harare offices of
several Christian groups, arresting the general secretary of the Student
Christian Movement of Zimbabwe and other officers and staff.

The student
Christian group accused the government of President Robert Mugabe of
"declaring war against its own people", in a statement following the 9 June
raid in which its general secretary Prosper Munatsi was taken in by
police.

In the 10 June statement, it said heavily armed members of the
police, central intelligence and military units had swooped on the
Ecumenical Centre in Harare, which houses the offices of several Christian
organizations, including the SCMZ and the Zimbabwe Christian
Alliance.

"In the process police ransacked the SCMZ offices and
confiscated computers, laptops, digital cameras, and a minibus," it stated.
Those arrested from the SCMZ, besides Munatsi, were Sandra Dzvete, an office
intern; Langelihle Manyani, the group's vice-chairperson; Matsiliso Moyo,
the gender secretary, and her seven month old baby; and Precious Chinanda,
the finance and administration officer. Four staff of the Zimbabwe Christian
Alliance were also reported to have been taken in by police, as was a member
of the Ecumenical Support Services.

"The movement sees this as a move
to incapacitate the movement since it has been fully geared towards
sensitising Christian students and youth on their rights and
responsibilities in the face of a break or make presidential runoff
pencilled in for 27 June 2008," stated the SCMZ, which is a national section
of the Geneva-based World Student Christian Federation.

The June runoff
election is being held after President Robert Mugabe was beaten in the first
round of voting by opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai who officially won 48
percent of the presidential vote, while Mugabe got 43 percent. Zimbabwe's
election law stipulates 50 percent plus one vote is required to avoid a
runoff but the opposition Movement for Democratic Change party says it won
the presidential poll outright and that it garnered 50.3 percent of the
vote.

Both the SCMZ and the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance have been
prominent in promoting peaceful and democratic change in the southern
African country, which has been led by Mugabe since its independence from
Britain in 1980.

Munatsi had been due to arrive in Geneva on 10 June to
take part in a side event at the UN Human Rights Council on the role of
young people and human rights in post-election situations.

Commenting
on the raid on the offices of the Zimbabwe Christian Alliance, Useni
Sibanda, the alliance's national coordinator, said, "This is pure harassment
of church organisations. We are just doing our usual work and we don't
understand why we should be attacked by riot police like this."

One
alliance staff member was reported to have been injured in the police
operation.

The SCMZ said it condemned "such acts of intimidation
directed to civil society players by the state security agents. The
government has abdicated its duties by declaring war on its own people and
creating an atmosphere of general insecurity among the populace." It added,
"To members of the ecumenical family the time has come for us not only to
speak but also to act against injustice, oppression and corruption according
to the standard of the word of God."

Meanwhile, women from various
Christian denominations gathered at six venue across the country to launch a
series of prayer rallies to seek divine intervention to stem post-election
violence, in which at least 60 people are reported to have died.

The
opposition MDC said three of its supporters were shot dead while four went
missing when suspected ruling party militants raided a party office in Zaka,
south of the capital, where party activists had sought shelter after fleeing
from violence.

The deaths of the opposition activists came days after two
local officials of Mugabe's ruling Zanu-PF party were shot dead in separate
incidents blamed on opposition supporters.

"As we pray there are some
who are hiding in mountains afraid to come down fearing that they may be
surrounded and attacked," Tawona Mtshiya, vice-chairperson of the
Evangelical Fellowship of Zimbabwe, told worshippers at a prayer meeting in
Harare on 31 May.

Pastor Vicky Mpofu, co-ordinator of Zimbabwe women's
national prayer taskforce, told worshippers, "This runoff will not help.
What we want is for these people [Mugabe and Tsvangirai] to come to the
table and talk."

Mennonites call for prayer and solidarity over Zimbabwe
vote

Ekklesia. UK

By agency reporter11 Jun 2008Mennonite World Conference (MWC),
which brings together 1.2 million Anabaptists within the Mennonite family,
is sending two deacons to Zimbabwe and calling for two days of global prayer
and fasting to coincide with the election run-off.

The presidential
contest in the troubled country has caused international controversy and
protest. The Mennonite-led days for reflection and solidarity will be on 26
and 27 June - the second of which is the day of the electoral
contest.

Ferne Burkhardt writes: MWC has also appealed to the heads of
the Southern African Development Community (SADC), the African Union (AU)
and the United Nations (UN) to intervene in the troubled
country.

"Zimbabwe is at a highly volatile time of crisis, and the threat
of long-standing violence looms over the run-off and its aftermath," says
Mennonite World Conference president Nancy Heisey in requesting intercession
from the global Anabaptist faith family.

"The Brethren in Christ
Church in Zimbabwe (BICCZ), led by Bishop Danisa Ndlovu (who is also MWC
president-elect) is urging sisters and brothers around the world to support
them at this time by praying and fasting on the day before and the day of
the run-off election, June 26-27," said Heisey.

Dan Nighswander and
Yvonne Snider-Nighswander, Mennonite Church Canada Witness workers in South
Africa, will go to Zimbabwe for two weeks, beginning around 18 June. MC
Canada has released them to serve as deacons of the MWC community to provide
encouragement to Bishop Ndlovu's family, pastors and others under stress.
They will also watch for and report additional ways for the global
Anabaptist family to stand in communion with Zimbabwe's churches.

"We
consider this invitation a sacred call and we cannot refuse it," said Dan.
"In our previous visits we have seen their [BICCZ] great courage and faith,
their hope and the difficulty of their circumstances.... By representing the
concern and prayerful support of the global communion of Anabaptist
churches, we trust we can make a difference."

The Nighswanders expect to
accompany the Ndlovus as they go about their business and will help however
they can in response to advice from the Ndlovus and other church
leaders.

"Our hope is that by walking alongside, the persons to whom we
relate will experience the MWC practice of demonstrating solidarity," said
Yvonne.

"This visit is not about programs or activities but about
relationships," explained Dan. He acknowledged that there are some risks, as
there are everywhere, but those risks are "less compelling than the urgency
of the call for support from our sisters and brothers who have become our
friends."

He said they were motivated by Galatians 6:2, 10: "Bear one
another's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.. So
then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and
especially for those of the family of faith."

The Nighswanders were
part of an MWC Koinonia (deacon) delegation to Zimbabwe last August and
attended the global assembly in Bulawayo in 2003.

Their Mennonite Mission
Network colleague in South Africa, Phil Lindell Detweiler, offered his
blessing for their short-term mission.

"Zimbabwe is constantly on our
hearts and in our prayers as the unrest and violence in our own country is
so closely tied to the situation there," said Detweiler. "Our prayer is that
the Lord will make a way for transition, healing and restoration that brings
hope to the country instead of more pain."

A 3 June 2008 letter sent
to H.E. Levy P. Mwanawasa, Chair of the SADC, H.E Jakaya Kikwete, Chair of
the AU and to H.E. Ban Ki-moon, UN Secretary-General cites the distress and
concern of international churches over the deepening crisis and rising
violence in Zimbabwe.

It calls for an international peace force to be
present during the June 27 run-off, for international (SADC, AU, UN)
election observers with freedom to circulate, that persons displaced due to
fear and violence be protected and brought back to vote, and that election
results be quickly and independently confirmed.

The March 29 election
results, withheld for more than one month, were never independently
verified. The Zimbabwe Electoral Commission declared that incumbent
President Robert Mugabe received 43.2 % of votes cast and his challenger
Morgan Tsvangirai, the MDC candidate, 47.9 percent, short of the 50% plus
one vote required to win. The MDC has claimed that the run-off is
inappropriate, since according to their count, Tsvangirai won a majority of
50.3%.

The letter also calls for the ruling and opposition parties,
representatives of the military, security forces, churches and civil society
to come to a negotiating table to map out future directions for the country.
Signed by Larry Miller, MWC general secretary, it was co-signed by the
general secretaries of the Reformed Ecumenical Council and the World
Evangelical Alliance. The complete text of the letter is posted on the MWC
web site (www.mwc-cmm.org)

"MWC's initiatives
serve to let our sisters and brothers in Zimbabwe know they are not
forgotten, and remind us that when the church suffers anywhere, we all
suffer," said Heisey.

Officials from BIC North American headquarters
reported that Bishop Ndlovu will attend the Brethren in Christ General
Conference in Toronto, June 27-30. He is scheduled to preach at the service
on Sunday, June 29, which will be dedicated to the Zimbabwe BIC Church. The
service will include a time of focused prayer for Zimbabwean brothers and
sisters and a special offering for the Zimbabwe BIC Church.

Mennonite
Central Committee spokesman Bruce Campbell-Janz said that MCC will continue
to provide some funds for Habbukuk Trust, a Christian non-government agency
in Zimbabwe that trains and directs election monitors, and does civic
education on elections. MCC has suspended a school feeding program around
Bulawayo, conducted in partnership with the BICCZ, since Mugabe has ordered
humanitarian groups to quit working in the country.

Zimbabwean Catholic says church groups in danger 'at any
time'

Jun-11-2008

By Bronwen DachsCatholic News Service

CAPE TOWN, South
Africa (CNS) -- Zimbabwean church groups are "in danger of police
interference at any time," a Catholic official said after the Ecumenical
Center in the capital, Harare, was raided June 9.

"No one is immune to
these raids," Alouis Chaumba, head of Zimbabwe's Catholic Commission for
Justice and Peace, said in a June 10 telephone interview from
Harare.

Chaumba said he is "afraid of what may happen to me and my family
and my friends," noting that he knows many people who have been injured or
had their property destroyed in the violence that followed late-March
elections.

Harare's Ecumenical Center houses a variety of groups,
including the Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe and the Zimbabwe
Christian Alliance.

"Heavily armed members of the police, central
intelligence and military personnel" raided the center and arrested five
staffers, including the Student Christian Movement general secretary,
Prosper Munatsi, the movement said in a June 10 statement.

Offices in
the center were ransacked and computers, digital cameras and a minibus were
confiscated, the statement said.

Also June 9, police "raided an
organization that looks after orphans and the homeless and said it must
close shop," Chaumba said.

Police are visible all over Zimbabwe, he said,
noting that there are "roadblocks everywhere" with some rural areas
impossible to reach. Police officers "make you get out of your vehicle and
take everything out before they start searching, which can take hours," he
said.

The Student Christian Movement of Zimbabwe is the national office
of the Geneva-based World Student Christian Federation. The Zimbabwe
Christian Alliance was formed in 2005 to help the estimated 700,000
Zimbabweans who lost their homes and livelihoods in a government campaign in
which riot police demolished homes and vendors' stalls in shantytowns around
major cities.

The Student Christian Movement statement said the
arrests and raid were aimed at hindering its work, which is "fully geared
toward sensitizing Christian students and youth on their rights and
responsibilities in the face of a break-or-make presidential runoff"
election scheduled for June 27.

In the March elections, opposition leader
Morgan Tsvangirai garnered 47.9 percent of the vote, leading President
Robert Mugabe, who has led Zimbabwe since 1980 and is widely blamed for the
country's economic crisis. The runoff was scheduled because a minimum of 50
percent plus one vote was needed to win the presidency in the first
round.

A report on postelection violence in Zimbabwe by the Solidarity
Peace Trust, an ecumenical group of church organizations from Zimbabwe and
South Africa, said, "There needs to be a general recognition that Zimbabwe
is sinking fast into the conditions of a civil war, propelled largely by the
increasing reliance on violence by the ruling party to stay in power, and
the rapidly shrinking spaces for any form of peaceful political
intervention."

The report, released in Johannesburg, South Africa, May
21, contained about 50 eyewitness accounts of orchestrated beatings, torture
and the destruction of homes and shops.

The Student Christian
Movement of Zimbabwe said it viewed the June 9 "arrests and detentions as
part of the broader campaign of intimidation orchestrated against
defenseless citizens," noting that the government "has abdicated its duties
by declaring war on its own people and creating an atmosphere of general
insecurity among the populace."

It is "our sacred duty as civil society
and opposition forces to continue fighting for the opening up of democratic
space and justice in Zimbabwe," the statement said, noting that the time has
come for church groups "not only to speak but also to act against injustice,
oppression and corruption."

Zimbabwe has the world's highest inflation
rate -- more than 100,000 percent -- an unemployment rate of more than 80
percent and severe shortages of basic foods and fuel.

Chaumba also
said that Anglicans in Zimbabwe "are being beaten up in their churches and
are bearing the brunt of the lack of freedom of worship" in the
country.

Anglican bishops from Botswana, Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe
said in an early June pastoral letter that members of the Harare Diocese are
being barred from praying in their churches, which "mirrors the persecution
of Christians of the early church, and in this context we remind the
perpetrators that then, as now, God still triumphs over evil."

The
people of Zimbabwe are living in "an environment devoid of any resemblance
of justice and peace," the bishops said.

They called on perpetrators of
"the immoral and criminal activities" to respect the rule of law which
safeguards and preserves human life and dignity, noting reports that "people
are being maimed, killed, and denied decent burials."